One Person Can Make A Difference

Our lives touch many.  Through our lives we touch far more than we often know.  Yet, it is too easy to walk around in a vacuum thinking that we impact very few, let alone the world.  I've always believed that one person can make a difference and history proves this to be true.

Whether it is through our words, our attitude or our actions, we impact one another.  It may be for better or worse, but we definitely impact those around us.  By touch everyone around us, we touch the entire world for we are connected to each other on this earth.

Take for instance if you get up in the morning and are in a bad mood.  You grumpily say good morning to your significant other or children.  They in turn pick up on what you say and what is not spoken which they then pass along to everyone they meet.  While the full effect may become diluted with each person it is passed on to, the initial grumpy greeting still carries the energy with it.  As it continues, some people are able to wash it away and others magnify it, thereby continuing the grumpy energy along to many more than you could possibly know.

Faith Based Interventions For Conversion Disorders

I just read a synopsis for a book you can purchase online.  It was about using faith based interventions for conversion disorder.  Now, while I fully respect that faith and the practice of religion can help a person in many situations, what these people are suggesting in this summary is anything but helpful.

If you are not helping people to heal, you are part of the problem.  Unfortunately, it doesn't stop people from preying on those that are down to their last ounce of strength, attempting to convince them that they just don't know how to handle stress as the means for their own survival.  Nothing like adding a little more guilt on someone because they don't buy into your faith based strategy for a mind numbing life.

Conversion disorder has nothing to do with a person praying or not praying, practicing a religious faith or not.   Conversion disorder is much more than that, but when I read what I did, it was very clear and evident that these individuals had no clue what they were saying.  Yes, they quoted some research study they did, but just because you claim to do research doesn't mean you do good quality research.

Love In Spite Of Hate

Like many others, I read the news of a particular member of our society passing away.  It is hard for me to be loving of this person, when I've felt the hate that he bestowed upon others.  He dressed his hate inside his religion and his church.  He and his members put on the pious robes of self pride as they sat in judgement of others.

If you can't guess by now who I'm talking about, it is the Westboro Baptist Church leader, Fred Phelps.  No, I don't know the guy personally, but I did see the hatred that he spewed across the airwaves of the world.  I saw his signs that he held.  I saw many people hurt and wounded by his words.

I can't sit here and judge his place in this world, but I know that what these people spewed from the pulpit of their tax free church enterprise was way over the line.  If they profess to follow the bible, I think they miss the entire sections of living their life like Jesus did.  Jesus preached love, not hate.  Jesus commanded that we love one another, not that we rip apart, destroy, and put down one another.

Yet, Westboro Baptist Church stands for anything but love.  Fred Phelps taught these people and from the sounds of some of the children, he taught it in abusive ways.  He might have professed to be the spokesperson for God and Jesus, but I would say if you observe his actions, he did not teach that which he proclaimed.